Esther Blythe

Deputy Director Russia and Belarus Sanctions at FCDO Sanctions Directorate

Speaker

Esther took over as Deputy Director Russia and Belarus Sanctions at the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) in May 2024. She is a long-time FCDO official, having worked in London on Russia policy, climate change and counter-terrorism. She was Deputy Consul-General in Hong Kong (2015-2019), and before that Deputy Head of the British Embassy in Bucharest (2010-2014). Her first diplomatic posting was in the Political Section of the British Embassy in Moscow (2002-2006), after spending a year learning Russian. Before joining the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in 2000, Esther worked in the Special Reports Team at the Financial Times in London.